New York City legislators made multiple moves Thursday including one to include electronic cigarettes in a policy banning tobacco products in certain public areas, the Associated Press reported.

The other decisions the council voted in favor of was a ban on plastic foam containers and the creation of a website designed to help people follow federal money is aiding repairs for damages caused by Superstorm Sandy.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg ends his 12 years in office on Dec. 31 and will likely sign both the plastic foam containers bill and e-cigarette bill before then. Both were initiatives he has pushed for during his time in office and will officially go into affect four months after he signs.

"Foam pollutes the waste stream, making it harder to recycle food waste as well as metal glass and plastic," the mayor said in a statement after the vote. "Once the ban takes effect, it will be much easier and more economical to collect and separate recyclables."

The plastic foam containers are popular for their low price and easy means of keeping food cool or warm. However, environmentalists see them only as a nuisance, as studies have shown them to be difficult to recycle.

The ban on e-cigarettes will prohibit their use in public spaces like bars, restaurants, parks and anywhere else where tobacco products are banned. Many scientists agree that e-cigarettes are far less dangerous than actual cigarettes and do help people quit smoking, but legislators have failed to come up with an effective way to regulate them. Some studies have classified them as a gateway to actual cigarettes for young people.

Former U.S. Surgeon General and board member for NJOY, one of the country's biggest e-cigarette manufacturer, said the decision troubled him.

"I'm extremely concerned that a well-intentioned but scientifically unsupported effort like the current proposal to include electronic cigarettes in New York's current smoking ban, could constitute a giant step backward in the effort to defeat tobacco smoking," he said in a statement.